Monday, February 14, 2011

Stowe Away

The total time invested was about 20 minutes. A young woman arrived at Manna, someone we had not seen before, and she looked troubled. We learned that she had hitch-hiked her way from Florida, with the destination being New York city. She was traveling with a male companion that had become abusive. All she wanted to do was to get back home, but she didn't know how she would be able to get away without him knowing.

Our case manager, Nadja, worked quickly. She talked with Barry, our food service manager and the two of them whisked the girl out to Manna's van. Not wanting to be seen, the girl lay on the van's floor while she was driven to the train station. As they arrived at the station, the train was about to depart, so Barry stalled them long enough for Nadja to buy a ticket and rush the girl onto the train. Already, Nadja had made arrangements with another social service organization in Philadelphia to assure that the girl would find her way to her home in Florida.

Many things, often unseen, happen in the midst of our days...

No comments: